"Of course Bill O'Brien would love to acquire someone as talented as Jimmy Garoppolo," NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport said on Thursday's edition of Up to the Minute. "It would make a lot of sense. The system would be the same, the transition would be easy, everything would match up."

While there's sentiment among skeptical football observers that Bill Belichick is simply playing hard to get in an attempt to initiate a bidding war, reports have remained steadfast that the Patriots simply will not trade their premium Tom Brady insurance.

If any organization is going to put together a godfather offer, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo pointed out, it would be Cleveland as opposed to Houston.

When Cleveland and New England discussed Garoppolo around the time of the NFL combine in late February, Garafolo added, the Patriots offered no indication that the former Eastern Illinois star would be available.